The present invention relates generally to the decoration of aquariums and pertains, more specifically, to a system for decorating aquariums with artificial aquatic plants.
Aquariums have been popular for a very long time as decorative installations in home, business and commercial settings, and have found a large following among hobbyists. Various decorative items have been made available for enhancing the aesthetic appearance of aquariums, including a very wide variety of artificial aquatic plants adapted to be placed within the aquariums themselves. These artificial aquatic plants usually are constructed of synthetic polymeric materials, such as polyethylene, which can be molded into realistic replications of natural plant parts. The artificial aquatic plants usually are immersed within the water in the aquarium and are anchored at the bottom of an aquarium with the molded plant parts supported by buoyancy or with relatively stiff wire reinforcing elements incorporated into the plant parts.
Artificial plants having an even more realistic appearance advantageously are constructed of synthetic polymeric materials such as polyester; however, since these materials have little or no buoyancy and are not amenable to the reception of stiffening reinforcement elements, artificial aquatic plants destined for aquariums ordinarily have not been constructed of these materials. Thus, while aesthetically more appealing artificial plants can be created through the use of such materials, these artificial plants heretofore have not been made available for practical and effective use in connection with the decoration of aquariums.
The present invention provides an effective and practical system for decorating aquariums with artificial aquatic plants of enhanced aesthetic appearance, essentially independent of the materials employed in the construction of the artificial plant. As such, the present invention attains several objects and advantages, some of which are summarized as follows: Provides a system for the ready and simplified incorporation of artificial plants of enhanced aesthetic appeal within conventional aquariums; enables effective placement of artificial aquatic plants of enhanced aesthetic appearance within a wide variety of aquariums, independent of the materials used in the construction of such artificial plants; allows enhanced aesthetic arrangements of artificial aquatic plants immersed within aquariums without reliance upon buoyancy or the incorporation of stiffening elements within the artificial plant structure; provides increased versatility in decorating aquariums with artificial aquatic plants; attains a wider variety of desirable aesthetic effects in the placement of artificial plants in aquariums; enables increased ease in decorating aquariums with artificial aquatic plants without a concomitant increase in cost and expense; provides a reliable system for decorating aquariums with artificial aquatic plants for exemplary performance over a long service life.
The above objects and advantages, as well as further objects and advantages, are attained by the present invention, which may be. described briefly as an artificial aquatic plant system for displaying a simulated plant in juxtaposition with a surface of an altitudinal wall of an aquarium, the altitudinal wall having an altitudinally upper edge and an altitudinally lower basal portion, the aquarium having a bottom adjacent the basal portion, the artificial aquatic plant system comprising: an artificial aquatic plant having a length extending between opposite ends; a retainer for placement adjacent the upper edge of the altitudinal wall of the aquarium, the retainer having a mounting element for mounting the retainer adjacent the upper edge of the altitudinal wall and a first coupling element integral with the mounting element for coupling one of the opposite ends of the artificial aquatic plant to the mounting element; and an anchor for placement adjacent the basal portion of the altitudinal wall, the anchor having a second coupling element for coupling the other of the opposite ends of the artificial aquatic plant to the anchor such that upon placement of the retainer adjacent the upper edge, placement of the anchor adjacent the basal portion, and coupling of the opposite ends of the artificial aquatic plant at the respective first and second coupling elements, the length of the artificial aquatic plant is extended in juxtaposition with the altitudinal wall between the retainer and the anchor, and the artificial aquatic plant is displayed in an array juxtaposed with the surface of the altitudinal wall of the aquarium.
Further, the invention includes a retaining system for retaining an. artificial aquatic plant displayed in juxtaposition with a surface of an altitudinal wall of an aquarium, the altitudinal wall having an upper edge and a lower basal portion, the aquarium having a bottom adjacent the basal portion, and the artificial plant having a length extending between opposite ends, the retaining system comprising: a retainer for placement adjacent the upper edge of the altitudinal wall of the aquarium, the retainer having a mounting element for mounting the retainer adjacent the upper edge of the altitudinal wall and a first coupling element integral with the mounting element for coupling one of the opposite ends of the artificial aquatic plant to the mounting element; and an anchor for placement adjacent the basal portion of the altitudinal wall, the anchor having a second coupling element for coupling the other of the opposite ends of the artificial aquatic plant to the anchor such that upon placement of the retainer adjacent the upper edge, placement of the anchor adjacent the basal portion, and coupling of the opposite ends of the artificial aquatic plant at the respective first and second coupling elements, the length of the artificial aquatic plant is extended along the altitudinal wall between the retainer and the anchor, and the artificial aquatic plant is displayed in juxtaposition with the surface of the altitudinal wall of the aquarium.
In addition, the invention includes an artificial aquatic plant for display in an array juxtaposed with a surface of an altitudinal wall of an aquarium, the altitudinal wall having an altitudinally upper edge and an altitudinally lower basal portion, the aquarium having a bottom adjacent the basal portion, the artificial aquatic plant comprising: a simulated plant structure having a length extending between opposite ends; and a retention member at each of the opposite ends for retaining one of the opposite ends adjacent the upper edge and the other of the opposite ends adjacent the basal portion of the altitudinal wall to display the artificial aquatic plant in the array juxtaposed with the surface of the altitudinal wall.